6th Annual Wild & Scenic Film Festival Saturday, January 14, 6:30 pm at Silco Theater
Join us for the 6th Annual Wild & Scenic Film Festival
Saturday, January 14, 6:30 pm at Silco Theater
The Gila Conservation Coalition invites you to join us for the 6th Annual Wild & Scenic Film Festival on Saturday, January 14 at 6:30 pm at the historic Silco Theater at 311 N. Bullard St in Silver City. The festival focuses on films that speak to the environmental concerns and celebrations of our planet.
Tickets are $15 at the door, GCC members $12, and students are free. A special price for admission plus a GCC membership will be offered for $20.
The Wild & Scenic Film Festival features films about rivers, social justice and activism, indigenous food, and climate change. We have a great lineup, with both serious and light-hearted selections, and a few locally produced films.
Great prizes from national sponsors Patagonia, CLIF Bar, Sierra Nevada Brewing, Orion Magazine, Klean Kanteen, Earthjustice, and Barefoot Wine & Bubbly as well as local sponsors will be awarded as part of the raffle, free with admission.
“The Wild & Scenic Film Festival is a natural extension of the Gila Conservation Coalition’s work to inspire people to act on behalf of the Gila River and its watershed,” says Allyson Siwik, Executive Director of the Gila Conservation Coalition. “The Wild & Scenic Festival shows us through film how communities like ours are working to protect their watersheds, unique landscapes, and the environment, galvanizing us to do the same.”
The Wild & Scenic Film Festival was started by the watershed advocacy group, the South Yuba River Citizens League (SYRCL) in 2003. The festival’s namesake is in celebration of SYRCL’s landmark victory to receive “Wild & Scenic” status for 39 miles of the South Yuba River in 1999. The 4-day event features over 100 award-winning films and welcomes over 100 guest speakers, celebrities, and activists who bring a human face to the environmental movement. The home festival kicks-off the international tour to over 150 communities around the globe, allowing SYRCL to share their success as an environmental group with others organizations. The festival is building a network of grassroots organizations connected by a common goal of using film to inspire activism.
With the support of National Partners: Patagonia, CLIF Bar, Sierra Nevada Brewing, Orion Magazine, Klean Kanteen, Earthjustice, and Barefoot Wine & Bubbly, the festival can reach an even larger audience.
“Films featured at Wild & Scenic give people a sense of place,” says Tour Associate Director, Amelia Workman. “In today’s busy world, it is easy to disconnect from our role in the global ecosystem. When we realize that the change we need in this world begins with us, we start making a difference.”
More than ten films will be screened locally, including Martin’s Boat, Mother of All Rivers, and CO2ld Waters.
Martin’s Boat by Peter McBride honors the legacy of Colorado River conservation hero Martin Litton. The film follows the newest boat in the Grand Canyon Dories fleet, the Marble Canyon, on its maiden voyage down the legendary Colorado River through the grandest canyon on Earth. Martin pioneered whitewater dories on the Colorado River in the 1960s and started a proud tradition of naming the boats after wild places that had been lost or compromised by the hand of man.
Mother of All Rivers by Will Parrinello and Mill Valley Film Group tells the story of how Berta Cáceres rallied her indigenous Lenca people to wage a grassroots protest that successfully pressured the government of Honduras and the world’s largest Chinese dam builder, SinoHydro, to withdraw from building the Agua Zarca Dam. Narrated by Robert Redford, this film illustrates how an ordinary person can effect extraordinary change. Berta was a true environmental hero who placed herself squarely in harm’s way to battle intimidating adversaries while building strong grassroots support. In 2016, Berta was assassinated in her home by armed intruders, after years of threats against her life.
In Co2ld Waters by Jeremy Roberts, five of the most respected names in the fly fishing world converge on a single creek in Montana to talk about their passion and to discuss the single biggest threat to their timeless pursuit, climate change. Can 4 million fly anglers make a difference? Legendary fishermen, including Yvon Chouinard, believe it is possible.
A special thanks to our local sponsors:
Major Sponsors – Center for Biological Diversity, Dennis Weller Photography, Gila Hike and Bike, Gila Resources Information Project, New Mexico Wilderness Alliance, Stream Dynamics, Upper Gila Watershed Alliance, Vicki Allen, LISW, Bob Wilson & Lisa Houston
Sponsors – Tom & Martha Cooper, Bob Garrett & Mary Hotvedt, Southwest New Mexico Audubon Society, Silver City Food Co-op, Syzygy Tileworks, TheraSpeech, Western Institute for Lifelong Learning
EVENT DETAILS:
Date & Time: January 14, 2017, 6:30 pm: Doors open at 6:00 pm and show starts at 6:30 pm.
Venue Name & Address: Silco Theater, 311 North Bullard St. Silver City
Ticket Prices: $15 at the door; GCC members $12; Admission + GCC membership $20; Students FREE.
For more information: Contact Allyson Siwik, info@gilaconservation.org, 575. 538.8078. www.gilaconservation.org